Refrigerating apparatus



EJ.HHDEMAN REFRIGERATING APPARATUS 2 Shams-Sheet 1 Filed Sept. 21 1925 mm; Mm v ATTORNEY.5

Patented Jl lly 19 27.

UNITED STATES FRED J. HEIDEMAN, or DETROIT, MICIEDIGAN'I nErmeEnA'rm APPAnArUs.

I A bficm mea September 21, 1925. Serial No.'57,i9o.

This invention'relatesto refrigerating apparatusand more particularly to the refrigcratorlor brine tank thereofth I One. of the important'objects? of the in- 5" ventionis to providean improved arrangement .or'. construction of expansion coil for use" in connection with. the. brine tank and designed to "facilitate the assembling of the coil and tank. Additional advantages of the'c'ons truction reside in the facility with which visual inspectionand tests may be conducted andthe' facility with which the coil. may; be repaired.

- Another important object of the invention is to. induce a highly efficient thermo-siphon circulation and this object is accomplished j bythe configuration and construction of;

the coil and its relation to the brine tank.

Theinvention has also among its objects, to "simplify, "render more eflicient, and improve generally devices of this character,

and the above as well as other objects, advantages, and novel details'of construction, will be made more apparent as this description proceeds, especially-whenconsidered in connection with the accompanying drawings ji wherein. 1 Fig. 1 is a top plan View of the brine tank ,constructed in accordance. with this inven- 'tion, fig.

2 is an end elevation thereof, and

Fig.3 is-a fragmentary perspective viewof the expansion coil 'removed from. the brinetank;

Referring, now particularly to 'the. drawings wherein like reference characters indicate like parts, it will be noted that there is provideda brine tank 10, which in mechanical refrigeratingapparatus is designed to contain brine or some other liquid having a relatively low freezing point This tank may-be of any suitable construction and isprovided with openings'or passages therethroughindicated herein by the reference characters 11 and 12. These passages are open at the ends of the tank and not only increase the. radiating surface of the tank but provide compartments for freezing water cubes, fruit. and the like in the manner customary with mechanical refrigeration. The walls of these openings also dividethe tank and define a path of circula- .tion followed by the brine or other similar fluid when the thermo-siphon circulation is induced by the expansion coil yet to be i .des .'ribcd.--' 7 The top 13 of the tank is preferably formed separately therefrom and adated to be secured thereto in any suitable manner, but this removable'top affords means for inserting the expansion coil. Secured to the top 13 are fittings 14 and 15 for connection-with the intake and outlet respectively of theexpansion coil.

The expansion coil'indicated generally by the reference character 16 is substantially an inverted L-shape in cross-section and is constructed of a single length of preferably copper tubing bent to the configuration or shape substantially as shown in Figure 3. This construction includes a plurality of superposed successi\ ely arranged coils, the coils being formed by providing a plurality of-returnbent curves 17- at the upper end of the coils and a plurality of returnbent curves 18 at the bottom thereof, these, returnbent curves 17 and 18 being successively arranged and in substantial alignment, the. parts of the tube forming the intermediate connecting portions of the coil being preferably crossed substantially as illustrated. VVhilethe particular manner in which the tube has been bent to form the coil 16 has been found efficient and advantageous" by reason of the greater capacity obtained, 35 still it will be immediately obvious that various other coil configurations may "be employed without sacrificing the advantages of the invention if the general inverted -L- shape is retained.

In Fig. 1 the reference character 19 indicates the customary expansion valve connected by means of a nipple 20 to the con; duit 21 which is connected to the compressor. The expansion valve 19 is connected, as for instance by means of the coupling flange 22 to the fitting 14 to which the intake end 23 of the expansion coilis connected. A sensitizer or thermo-responsive device 24 is suitably connected to fitting 15 to which the outlet end 25 of coil 16 is connected. The sensitizer 24 is connectedby means of a nipple 26 to a tube ,27 by means of which the refrigerating medium flowing out of coil 16 is conducted to the intake port of the compressor. By means of the nipple 28 connection is made with a tube 29 which extends tov a pressure responsive device such, for instance as a thermostat, usually employed in mechanical refrigerating apparatus for controlling the compressor motor switch. The tank 10 may be filled with brine or other iluid having it relatively low freezin oint b hmeans of a. fillinr'o en-' in closed by filler cap 30. n operation, with the refrigeratmg medmm in the coil 16 a thermosiphon errcule tion will be induced by reason of the cooling of the brine Or other fluid at the top and lcfthand side of the tank as viewed in Fig. 2. This cooled fluid will fall and displace the warmer fluid contained in the bottom and ri hthend side of the tank in a direction sn stantially as indicated by the arrows. As the. warmer. fluid rises to the top of the tank it comes in'contact with the expansion coils contained therein. It will become cooled and drop vdown the lefthand side of the tank in proximity to the coils therein contained, thus inducing a contin'w ous circulation which eventually will cause a complete cooling ofell ofthe fluid within the tank.

As mentioned hereinbefore, the arrangement of the coil within the tank induces a. maximum thermosiphon circulation by which a maxlmvnm refrigerating 'efiiclency 1s obtalnech Furthermore byreason of the fact that the coil is of an inverted L-shapein crosssection. it may be positioned within the tank from the top without interference with the openings 11and 12 formed in the tank. In assembling this is particularly advantageous because the tube may be given a pressureimmersion and} visual inspection prior to the inspection of the tank proper. This arrangement, in addition. tofecilitating to a great degree the assembling of the arts, renders the coil more readily accessililo for removal and repair.

While a specific embodiment of the-invention has been described and illustrated here in somewhat in detail, it will be immediately apparent that various changes and modifications in the s cific structure illustrated may be resortje to without departing from the spirit and scope of. this-invention, and to this end reservation ismede to make such changes as may come within the purview of the accompanying claims.

N l hat I claim as my invention is:

1. In a refrigerating apparatus, a brine tank formed with a separate top wall, a

walled opening formed in said tank and entending therethrough from side to side, and

unexpansion coil comprising a series of subste'ntmlly L-shepe loops lnserteble in said tank through the top thereof to clear said walled opening, with a portion thereof disposed ad acent one vertical wallof the tank and another top of thetan 2; In a refrigerating apparatus, an expension coil lorined by a pipe bent to form *a. series of substantially similar loops oil'- set from each other in the plane of said loops, said loops being bent as a unit about an axis transverse to said loops, giving the unit substantially an L-shep'e.

3. In a refrigerating apparatus, the combination with u tank for receivin a liquid to be cooled, of e coolin coil orming a series of loops arranged so stantiully in the same plane and bent transversely of said loops to form relatively transverse portions, one extending: downwardly -ad acent one wall of said tank and the other extending from the top ofthe tank to clear said walled openings. 7

a 5 ln s refrigerating apparatus, a tank for receiving a liquid to be cooled provided with uwelled opening extending therethrough fromside to side in c direction sub stentially .parallel to :1 third side, a' substantially L-shaped expansion coil comprising a series of successively overlapping substantially L-shaped loops arranged within said tank with one of the transverse portions thereofadjecent the top of said tank, and the othertransverse portion extending downwardly between said walled opcning.

and e side of the'tenk parallel to the walls of said opening. V

In testnnony whereof I afiix my signature.

FRED J. iisrDEMAN.

portion disposed adjacent the 

